A Letter to My Father

Dear Daddy,

My lawn has gotten out of control again. Would you be able to bring your lawn mower and your two helpers (both under the age of 5- that's not against child labor, right?) and bring the grass back under control? Knee high is a good length for a dress, not for the grass.

And while you're at it, would you please bring your gargantuan spider killer spray? I've got three (see pictures below) new lawn decorations that I would prefer not to have. And since the last lawn ornament I killed last week had to be killed with a hammer (my shoe couldn't do the job), I don't think I'll be able to evict these guys without the aid of your spray.

Hope to see you soon!

Your loving daughter,

Gloria

P.S. Have you ever noticed how much Jason Hawes from Ghost Hunters looks like Jonathan?

<- That's my brother.

That's Jason Hawes from Ghost Hunters.->

**Insert Snappy Blog Title Here**

I don't have a title for this blog. Nothing interesting has happened yet. School is going well. The kids are... behaving. They just seem to be very social. I think I have a student who has volunteered to save my choir from the torturous piano playing I have been submitting them to. And thanks to Nancy, I can't use well or so to start any paragraph ever again!

I think I need a t-shirt or coffee cup that says "I survived Ike" or something. That storm was wicked crazy, and really hit Batesville hard. One of the guys Jonathan works with had a tree fall on his house- into the nursery he and his fiance had just finished for the arrival of their new baby in a few weeks. Darren said the tree fell directly over the crib where the baby should have been. Wow, huh?

I'm having a lot of fun with the 4th- 6th grade right now. They are so funny! The toughest class I have is probably a tie with my Jr. High Choir and my Elementary self contained class. I have 19 boys and 10 girls in this class. I really don't know what it is about this area, but it seems that the boys outnumber the girls almost 2 to 1! Several of my classes have about 15 or 16 in the class, of which there are only three to four girls. Crazy, huh?

Anyway (there's another word for Nancy's anti-word list), I'm heading to bed. I get to meet with my mentor tomorrow afternoon. Oh, one good thing. Apparently my choir website has been getting a lot of attention from the administration. I guess they like it or something. The high school principal has asked all of his teachers to take a look at it and see if it would be something they would be interested in doing. Hmm, does that sound like an inservice workshop that I could perhaps get double the credit for or what!

I like Ike... Not.

It's 5:20 AM. Yes, AM. I'm awake because some crazy wicked hurricane- oh wait, it's now a tropical depression- is sitting right over my house. Literally. I typed in the Longitude and Latitude of where the storm is located and it said, "Ha! That's your house! "

Pine cones are being hurtled at the house and rolling across the roof; trees are being laid down almost to the ground with the force of the wind; and pelting rain sounds like it will shatter the thin glass of my window at any moment. And of course, I'm awake. I usually can sleep through anything, so this should tell you how much noise this stupid storm is making.

But I guess it could be worse. At least I don't live in Houston.

Beautiful, Beautiful Boys

A few weeks ago we celebrated Braden's fourth birthday. Jonathan and Melanie decided that he should have a bike for his birthday. Here he is riding his brand new birthday bike!

Saturday, I spent the day with Landon. And of course, that meant a few photo opportunities! Even though he started breaking out in CHICKEN POX! Even though he has had his chicken pox shot, Landon was exposed to secondary chicken pox. Apparently Braden had the same thing exactly fourteen days ago. So, even if you're child has had the chicken pox shot, he or she can still contract chicken pox!

I Hate the Boonies.

Moving into the middle of nowhere has taught me to appreciate the finer things in life: driving without fear of deer, reliable phone and internet service, and the ability to be in a five mile radius of Wal-Mart.

I miss Wal-Mart. I never would have thought that would have been possible. If you are within a ten minute drive to Wally World, please think of me when you go.